Tag: allergy testing

DETECTION OF IGE REACTIVITY TO A HANDFUL OF ALLERGEN MOLECULES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD PREDICTS RESPIRATORY ALLERGY IN ADOLESCENCE

November 24th, 2018 by FCAAIA

FCAAIA Notes: As allergists, we spend a lot of time thinking ahead. What will be the natural course of our patient’s disease? Of course, no one can predict the future, but we are able to glean some good clues to make an educated prediction.

A positive test for any allergen does not tell you that you are allergic. It merely indicates that you have the immunologic potential to become so. A diagnosis of allergy requires symptoms, not just a positive test.

This study confirms and extends previous findings that the presence of the allergic antibody (IgE) to certain allergens in the preschool years significantly increases the risk of persistent allergies and/or asthma during the teen years. Continue reading “DETECTION OF IGE REACTIVITY TO A HANDFUL OF ALLERGEN MOLECULES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD PREDICTS RESPIRATORY ALLERGY IN ADOLESCENCE”

FOOD ALLERGY: CONSENSUS REPORT STRESSES DIAGNOSTIC ACCURACY

September 17th, 2017 by FCAAIA

FCAAIA Notes: The best test for diagnosis of food allergy is a thorough history as to what happens with ingestion. Tests for food allergy can help confirm or refute a diagnostic suspicion (which means the physician needs to have a diagnostic suspicion before doing the test). The results are not “black and white” but require interpretation in the context of the patient’s history. A positive does not mean you have allergy. If you do not have symptoms with ingestion you are not allergic. Continue reading “FOOD ALLERGY: CONSENSUS REPORT STRESSES DIAGNOSTIC ACCURACY”

TESTING PENICILLIN ALLERGY CUTS WIDE-SPECTRUM ANTIBIOTIC — USE

March 14th, 2017 by FCAAIA

FCAAIA Notes: Of all the medications out there, the one for which we have the best data about how to interpret testing is penicillin. If your testing to penicillin and a metabolite of penicillin (Pre-Pen®) is negative, there is up to a 95% chance you do not have an immediate-type allergy to penicillin, even if you have a strong history suggesting allergy). The several percent “false-negative” are probably allergic to other metabolites (minor determinant mixture, MDM). Patients who had severe allergic reactions to penicillin are sometimes allergic to MDM, creating a bit of a quandary. So, we often eliminate that last 5+% by doing an observed in-office challenge to penicillin in patients with negative skin testing. Continue reading “TESTING PENICILLIN ALLERGY CUTS WIDE-SPECTRUM ANTIBIOTIC — USE”

AAP: INDOOR ALLERGEN TESTING ‘A MUST’ FOR KIDS WITH ASTHMA

November 22nd, 2016 by FCAAIA

FCAAIA Notes: The vast majority of children with asthma have allergies and should have allergy testing. Therefore, a thorough history of environmental exposures, correlated with the patient’s history and his testing results allow for focused recommendations for allergen avoidance.

The role of allergy in asthma is so well established that national and international guidelines for the care of asthma indicate that patients with persistent asthma (and allergy) should be considered candidates for allergy shots. Continue reading “AAP: INDOOR ALLERGEN TESTING ‘A MUST’ FOR KIDS WITH ASTHMA”